1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates in general to the field of protective equipment for harness racing horses and in particular to knee pads which fit on the inside of a harness racing horse's legs, which knee pads are adapted to prevent the horse from hurting himself when running due to the bumping or hitting of the inside portion of one of the horse's front knee joints by the hoof of the other front leg.
2 Description of the Prior Art
The prior art knee pads for harness racing horses are exemplified by the present day design of the same which comprises a complete covering for the inside of the horse's knee joints. The prior art knee pads are each strapped to one of the horse's legs such that the knee pads fit loose enough to allow the horse's legs to bend at the knee joint when the horse is running. In order to make certain that the knee pads are maintained in position, they are fitted with hooks (dees) to which are attached straps (suspenders) which extend from each of the knee pads to and around the horse's back. In this manner, the prior art knee pads will not fall below the horse's knee joints. However, as stated previously, sufficient looseness must be provided between the knee pads and the horse's knee joints so that the horse can bend its legs when running and such that the knee boots themselves do not gall or chafe the horse's inner legs. Unfortunately, the knee pads of the prior art are unable to adequately prevent such chafing or rubbing and thereby sores are often caused at the location of the knee pads.
Since the horse's knee joints are very knobby compared to the horse's legs above and below the knee joints, the prior art knee pads extend out into the space between the horse's legs at the knee joints. And, in order to accommodate the knobbiness of the horse's knee joints, an L-shaped pad extended outward from the inner surface of each of the prior art knee pads. This L-shaped pad fit around the horse's inside knee joints in order to attempt to have the inside surface of the knee pads in contact with the horse's knee joint anatomy while providing an outside or outer flat surface. Unfortunately, the bulkiness of such design of the prior art knee pads often results in the knee pads themselves being the cause of a horse bumping or hitting the knees of his front legs while running. Another problem of the prior art knee pads is the inability of the pads to remain in position on the horse's knee joint. Thus, there is the problem of the knee pad turning around on the horse's leg while he is running.
In accordance with the above, the prior art knee pads for harness racing horses are bulky, ill-fitting and tend to rotate around the horse's legs, require additional equipment to maintain them up at the horse's knee joint, often cause galling of the horse's knee joints and yet do not provide the requisite protection to the horse's inner knee joints.
Accordingly, it is a primary object of the present invention to provide knee pads for harness racing horses which are lightweight, provide a smaller strike surface, are not bulky, and fit snugly against the inside of a horse's knee joint and thereby improve the horse's confidence, speed and gait.
Another objective of the present invention is to provide knee pads for a harness racing horse which do not require additional equipment such as hooks and suspenders to maintain the knee pads in position on the horse's legs.
Another object of the present invention is to provide knee pads for a harness racing horse which closely conform to the anatomy of a horse's knee joint and yet provide for protection against the horse hitting his knees with his hoofs while running.
Yet another objective of the present invention is to provide a knee pad which allows freedom of movement and bending of the horse's legs without restriction by the knee pads.
The above-stated objects as well as other objects which although not specifically stated, but are intended to be included within the scope of the present invention, are accomplished by the present invention and will become apparent from the hereinafter set forth detailed description of the invention, drawings, and the claims appended herewith.